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Costume Design

Types of Degrees Costume Design Majors Are Earning

Students pursuing Costume Design have the option of earning degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Associate’s Degree	14
Bachelor’s Degree	21
Master’s Degree	18

What Costume Design Majors Need to Know

Programs in Costume Design build a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Costume Design graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

This major prepares you for careers needing Costume Design emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Fine Arts — Importance 4.4 / 5; level 5.8 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 5.4 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Design — Importance 3.3 / 5; level 3.6 / 7.
• Communications and Media — Importance 3.3 / 5; level 3.9 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

The skill set emphasized by a Costume Design program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.5 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.
• Instructing — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Active Learning — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.0 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.4 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to Costume Design careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.8 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 3.9 / 5; level 4.3 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Costume Design graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Thinking Creatively	4.9 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.6 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	4.5 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.4 / 7
Coaching and Developing Others	4.3 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.3 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.3 / 7
Getting Information	4.0 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	4.0 / 7
Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates	3.9 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Costume Design professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	✓
Adobe Illustrator	Graphics or photo imaging software	✓
Microsoft PowerPoint	Presentation software	✓
Adobe Acrobat	Document management software	—
Adobe Creative Cloud software	Graphics or photo imaging software	✓
Microsoft Outlook	Electronic mail software	✓
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Adobe Photoshop	Graphics or photo imaging software	✓
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
Adobe InDesign	Desktop publishing software	✓
JavaScript	Web platform development software	—
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	✓

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Costume Design graduates include:

• Adjunct Art Instructor
• Fine Arts Professor
• Art Educator
• Studio Instructor
• Scene Design Lecturer
• Media Arts Professor
• Violin Teacher
• Photography Professor
• Photography Teacher
• Dance Instructor
• Music Professor
• Arts and Crafts Instructor
• Drama Teacher
• Band Teacher
• Digital Arts Instructor

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Costume Design graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Master’s degree	39.9%
Doctoral degree	24.9%
Bachelor’s degree	21.7%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	10.5%
Post-master’s certificate	1.3%
High school diploma or equivalent	0.8%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	0.6%
Some college courses	0.2%
Less than a high school diploma	0.1%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in Costume Design?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly female, with women earning 92.2% of Costume Design degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	59	92.2%
Men	5	7.8%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Costume Design graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	41	64.1%
Asian	3	4.7%
Hispanic or Latino	8	12.5%
Black or African American	2	3.1%
Two or More Races	3	4.7%
Race Unknown	1	1.6%
International Students	6	9.4%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Costume Design Graduates Earn?

The U.S. Department of Education tracks median earnings of Costume Design graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. These numbers tend to grow steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$21,253
4 years	$29,200
5 years	$33,047

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $33,047 — roughly 55% above the 1-year mark.

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Online Costume Design Programs

Distance learning is tracked by IPEDS for Costume Design. The table below shows how many graduates earned at least some of their coursework online (Distance-Ed Available) versus completing the entire program online (Distance-Ed Only).

Award Level	Distance-Ed Available	Distance-Ed Only
Bachelor’s	1	0
Master’s	1	0

^{Distance-Ed Only = degrees completed entirely online; Distance-Ed Available = degrees including at least some online coursework. Source: IPEDS Completions by Distance Education status.}

Is a Degree in Costume Design Worth It?

Looking purely at the federal earnings tracker, Costume Design graduates earn a median of $29,200 four years after completion — about 23% below the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000). On earnings alone, this program does not show an income premium over the baseline; non-financial outcomes (career interests, certification requirements, advancement potential) are typically the stronger argument for fields in this range.

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	CIP Code
Drama/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft	50.05
Acting	50.0506
Comedy Writing and Performance	50.0511
Directing and Theatrical Production	50.0507
Drama and Dramatics/Theatre Arts, General	50.0501
Dramatic/Theatre Arts and Stagecraft, Other	50.0599
Musical Theatre	50.0509
Playwriting and Screenwriting	50.0504
Technical Theatre/Theatre Design and Technology	50.0502
Theatre and Dance	50.0512
Theatre Literature, History and Criticism	50.0505
Fashion/Apparel Design	50.0407

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.